For the Trojans (25-3), who were trying to claim the school's first state title since 2001, the defeat was painful for many reasons.

"It's just upsetting coming up short," Vazquez said. "Making it all the way here and walking away with second place, it's not very fun."

The core of this team was comprised of seven seniors who had played together since middle school. Their dream destination was always state gold and they nearly made it.

Vazquez gave Tulpehocken an immediate jolt when he scored after a scramble in front of the net 3:39 into the first half.

It was Vazquez's 39th - and turned out final - goal of his magical season. It was his 17th goal in 11 playoff games, a total that included three game-winners in overtime or in the final minutes of regulation.

Scoring quickly made Tulpehocken's players believe it was their time. They finally broke through against an opponent that shut them out in the district playoffs each of the past two years.

"We all felt good coming into this game," senior A.J. Frantz said. "We all had this feeling in our guts that we couldn't lose to these guys three times in a row. It was statistically impossible."

It's easy to see why the Trojans felt that way. They were 45-5 since the start of last season. Despite all of that success, Mennonite remained the puzzle that couldn't be solved.

The two-time defending District 3 champs calmly recovered from their deficit.

Caleb Cole scored 34:18 into the first half after a defensive mistake gave him an empty net. Cole struck again at 18:37 of the second half, pushing a shot between the legs of goalie Jesse Miller for the clincher.

It was the first state championship for Mennonite (25-3), which outscored its eight district and state opponents by a combined 24-2. The Blazers shook off the early adversity.

"We've been in that situation before," Mennonite coach Fred Winey said. "There was a lot of game to be played. I think they handled it well. They didn't get panicked by it."

Tulpehocken played the final 22:08 without defender Anthony Daub, who was given two yellow cards and banished to the bench. Daub's absence hurt the Trojans on offense and defense.

The Berks champs were unable to create a dangerous scoring chance while frantically trying to get the equalizer in the final minutes.

The seniors' dream forever remained one goal away.

"They have nothing to hang their heads about," Tulpehocken coach Tim Frantz said. "It was a great season. For us to get here says a lot. Obviously you want to win it. It hurts. I feel bad for the kids."